Cycle A Team: The Great Conveyor Belt
Discussion Questions & Answers:
1. How will it affect people in the coastal areas?
The shutdown of the Gulf Stream as part of the Great Conveyor Belt would affect the climate for the people of Florida. The Gulf Stream provides a milder climate for the southern state than other parts of the south during the winter.
2.Will it affect ocean species?
The Gulf Stream glows to the Northeast towards the Nantucket areas. The current helps the biodiversity of plant species that live in the areas.
3.Can we do anything to keep it from causing so much damage?
Climate changes have always been a part of an evolving Earth. IN order to reduce the warming of the Earth world leaders have come together to propose a goal for the future. They have suggested reducing the amount of greenhouse emissions to limit global warming. This can be done by reducing the use of fossil fuels and developing and using clean alternative fuels such as the wind, sun, and biomasses.
4.What changes cause temperatures in the ocean to drop?
Temperatures in the ocean drop when there is a lot of salt (salinity) in the ocean. Lately glaciers have been melting and running off into the oceans. They are carrying CO2 which then flow down deep in the ocean. The salty water is pushed to the north while the fresh water goes south. As the water moves northward along the surface, it passes the tropics where it is warmed to nearly 28° C. Thus, heat transport in the Atlantic is everywhere to the north, even in the southern hemisphere. All the solar heat absorbed by the Atlantic, about one petawatt, is carried northward to warm the northern hemisphere. The heat is lost when the warm water cools keeping the far North Atlantic ice free, and it helps keep Europe warm.”http://oceanworld.tamu.edu/resources/oceanography-book/abruptclimatechange.htm
“Spero said. Warming climate, higher rainfall and fresher conditions can alter the circulation. During glacial times, reduced circulation caused climate to cool.”“National Science Foundation (2006, October 6). Researchers Link Ice Age Climate-change Records To Ocean Salinity. ScienceDaily. Retrieved November 27, 2011, from /releases/2006/10/061006074312.htm”
5. What temperature changes have occurred in the oceans?The ocean has warmed about 0.1 degree Fahrenheit (0.055 degree Celsius) in the past 30-50 years.
6. What caused these changes?Research shows that when the carbon dioxide was at high levels the Ice Age happened."In every historic sequence we observed, the abrupt warming of Greenland occurred about when carbon dioxide was at maximum levels," Brook said. "And that was during an Ice Age, and at levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide that are far lower than those we have today." Oregon State University (2008, September 11). Ice Core Studies Confirm Accuracy Of Climate Models. ScienceDaily. Retrieved November 27, 2011, from /releases/2008/09/080911150048.htm Therefore, the carbon dioxide levels are much higher than the first Ice Age, meaning that it is possible to have a New Ice Age soon.
7. If changes continue at this rate, how long before another “Ice Age” occurs?
If the Great Conveyor Belt stops flowing winter would set in for the eastern half of North America and all of Europe and Siberia and never go away. In three years these areas would become uninhabitable and about two billion humans would starve, freeze or relocate. “Preliminary computer models and scientists willing to speculate suggest the switch could flip as early as next year, or it may be generations from now. It may be wobbling right now, producing the extremes of weather we've seen in the past fewyears”
8. How doeswind affect the water?
Wind moving over the water produces a great deal of evaporation, leading to a decrease in temperature, called evaporative cooling. Evaporation removes only water molecules, resulting in an increase in the salinity of the seawater left behind, and thus an increase in the density of the water mass. In the Polar Regions, seawater at the surface of the ocean is intensely cooled by the wind.
9. Is it likely that global warming will cause an abrupt climate change? If so, how soon can it happen?
Global warming will increase precipitation, river run-off, melting of the Greenland ice sheet, and melting of polar sea ice, all of which will increase the amount of fresh water flowing into the critical deep-water formation areas by Greenland.
In the 2007 IPCC Fourth Assessment Report Summary for Policymakers (PDF File) it states that, based on current model simulations, it is very likely (90-99% confidence) that the meridional overturning circulation (MOC) of the Atlantic Ocean will slow down during the 21st century. It also confirms the scientific consensus that is very unlikely the MOC will undergo a large abrupt transition during this century
10. Will the changes affect the ecosystem in the ocean?
As the Earth grows warmer and the oceans collect more CO2, warming water and increasingly toxic seas will destroy vibrant ecosystems worldwide.
Research Plan:
Rosa: Lithosphere Interactions
Josie: Biosphere Interactions
Itza: Hydrosphere Interactions
Problem Statement:
The Great Ocean Conveyor Belt is responsible for keeping the Earth temperature regulated. The shutdown of the Great Ocean Conveyor Belt could prompt another Ice Age in the Northern Hemisphere if long term measures are not taken.